Quick Start Guide | Freefly Public

Instructions for RTK with the Pilot Pro can be found on our Pilot Pro wiki through the link below

Instructions for RTK with the Astro's Herelink controller can be found on our Pilot Pro wiki through the link below

Pre-requisites

Before operating the RTK GPS, you should have the following:

Alta X with RTK GPS
- If you are retrofitting RTK GPS onto an existing Alta X, follow the installation guide.
Alta X running firmware v1.3 or above (see firmware update steps here)
Telemetry Radio, such as the Freefly FRX Pro
Base Station RTK GPS module on a stable mount (tripod is recommended!) and a USB-C Cable
Alta QGroundControl v1.3 or above running on Windows or macOS (download on support page)

Operation Checklist

Title

1.

Get Alta powered on and ready to fly

2.

Install base station module onto mount

3.

Connect Alta QGroundControl to aircraft

4.

Click the "RTK" symbol to open the status window

5.

Connect base station module to laptop via USB

6.

Ensure QGroundControl recognized the module

Wait until GPS Status no longer says "Not Connected"

7.

Open RTK status window and press "Restart" button to initiate survey-in.

8.

Wait until GPS Status says "GPS Initializing."

Note: If the status does not change after 10 seconds, refer to the troubleshooting section.

9.

Wait for GPS Status to change to "Survey-in Complete".

Note: The survey-in process will complete after the minimum survey-in time has completed (typically 180s) AND the accuracy is below the configured threshold (2m). See the configuration page for adjusting these parameters.

10.

Wait for Aircraft GPS status of "RTK GPS Lock (fixed)"

11.

Ensure that Aircraft location is correctly indicated on the map

12.

Fly and enjoy!

Any time you move the base station GPS, it is recommended that you manually restart survey-in by clicking on the "Restart" button. This ensures that the base station updates its location and provides optimal absolute positioning.